It would prove useful to review Charlotte Bronte's Belgian experience (and some of the letters she wrote to M. Heger) and compare that with the persons and events in Villette. Some thought should also be given to the coincidental aspects of the plot—do they damage it beyond repair, or do they help to create a sense of completion and reality? A study of what is known about the people who served as the foundations for the central characters in Villette could prove helpful. Also, attention could be devoted to the principles of existential philosophy, to see, as with Sartre's claim that man chooses himself, if the declaration that Lucy is something of an existentialist character has merit.

1. Do the French passages distract from a satisfactory reading of the text, or do they give it an air of realism that aids in the artistic effect...